CMERA Chronicle – October 2024
September was an unusual month. During most of the month, we experienced drought conditions but, by the end of the month, heavy rains arrived accompanied by strong winds. There were exploding pagers in the Middle East, a mass shooting off I-75 in Kentucky, rumors of domestic animals being cooked in Springfield, a sheriff charged with killing a judge in a courtroom in Kentucky, Pete Rose died, and a rail tanker leak forcing the evacuation of hundreds of people locally.
Fall General Meeting
Presentations for the Fall General Meeting are nearly complete. The following topics are planned (subject to change:)
- Overview of 2024 goals and accomplishments
- Goals for 2025
- Operating budget for 2025
- CSA Update
- Presentation on Senior Scams
- Information on new dental insurance options for 2025
My Hero – Tim Santel
I have a new hero. His name is Tim Santel. I never met Mr. Santel. He died on September 10, and he was 77 years old. I don’t know anything about his life, but he has my admiration. Why? Because the memorial service for Tim, as printed in the Enquirer, was held at Linnie’s Pub. Anyone who has his official memorial service at a local bar is my hero! This Bud’s for you, Tim!
Kroger Merger
The Cincinnati Enquirer printed several reports recently about the potential merger of Kroger with Albertson. In court proceedings, two quotes made me reflect. Stuart Aitken, Kroger’s Chief Merchant and Marketing Officer, was quoted as saying: “a banana is a banana is a banana.” The more I read that quote, the more I kept saying to myself “a politician is a politician is a politician.” They’re all the same – perhaps.
The other quote was from Kroger CEO Rodney McMullen who said: “In business, once it is obvious – it’s too late.” That got me thinking about the role CMERA plays in monitoring the City. It is important that all retirees be mindful of actions the City took in the past to reduce our promised benefits. We don’t want it to be “too late” should the City decide to adversely impact our pension or benefits again. We don’t want to look back afterwords and say that it was obvious what they were doing.
September 11
I still remember that day. On September 11, 2001, I was performing consulting work for a company based in Chicago. I lead the Cincinnati office. My assignment was to prepare a manual for parking enforcement for the City of Hoboken, NJ. My partner from the Chicago office arrived in Hoboken on Monday the 10th. I was to join him on the 12th. Hoboken is just across the Hudson River from Manhattan. My partner got to witness the smoke from the Twin Towers. He walked to the riverbank and gathered with hundreds of people – most standing still, some crying as the buildings fell. I believe all Americans died a little that day. All flights were canceled so my partner rented a car at the airport and drove it to Chicago. My trip was postponed for several months. It was several weeks before I was flying again.
Classic Foot-In-Mouth
Recall the rail tanker leak late last month? A person was asked by a reporter about the odor being emitted from leak. Her answer was that it smelled like they were cooking meth. How does she know what meth……Never mind.
Social Security
Legislation was drafted several years ago to remove the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) for some Social Security recipients. This rule reduces the monthly payments to those eligible for Social Security benefits if the person also receives a pension from a local government like the City. Just recently, after nearly two years, enough Congressional representatives had signed off on the legislation to allow a vote in the House. As written, the WEP would be eliminated and City retirees who also receive Social Security would get more money. It sounds great, but its enactment is uncertain. If the bill is approved by the House, it must then get approval by the Senate and then signed by the President.
Passage is not certain. Some legislators believe the bill would adversely impact the Social Security Trust Fund. Last year, my Congressman informed me that he is opposed to the bill.
The proposed bill could be modified to reduce the WEP but not eliminate it. This may get more votes for approval. The time to pass this legislation, however, is short. The House and Senate are both in session for only 22 days until the end of the year. No vote in the House is expected until after the election. Any approval must be finalized before the end of the term. If the bill is not approved this year, it must be re-introduced next year, starting the process over again.
In short, there is hope, but don’t budget for any increase in Social Security yet. Remember my words earlier: “A politician is a politician is a politician.”
Newsletter
I hope everyone (assuming you are an active member of CMERA) received the Fall newsletter. If not, let us know.
Until next month